Surviving with help of Diospyros kaki Creveld, The World Tree

by Marijke Creveld

On the 9th of august 1945 the plutonium bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. This dropping signified the end of the Second World War. The greater part of the town was destroyed, a large percentage of the population killed. Near the epicenter one tree survived the bomb: the Kaki tree, of which the official name is: Diospyros kaki. This tree managed to survive the inferno. Its power for survival renders this tree the Tree for the World.

Introduction
About six years ago I began a search for new homeopathic remedies. I feel strongly attached to trees and because of my personal history, also to the development of this trees and the problems of this era. So I was searching for a tree with medicinal and healing properties which also was connected with world development and the problems of our time. After a long search especially at sacred places, I discovered the Kaki tree in Nagasaki.
The name of the tree is highly symbolic: Divine fruit for the soul during his stay on earth.

The search for this tree and remedy was a very special, moving and spiritual experience. Nothing during this search was accidental. Everything seemed predestined.
I used the root, bark and fruit of this tree to develop the homeopathic remedy: Diospyros kaki Creveld.

Everything in Nagasaki was destroyed by the enormous blast caused by the explosion, the ensuing fire and the radioactive and poisonous plutonium. Around the tree death reigned. The survivors had to deal with severe illnesses, thick scar tissue, internal hemorrhages, boldness, cancer (leukemia).
In the following generations a high percentage of children were born with congenital anomalies.
The Kaki-tree in Nagasaki stands for the end of the Second World War, the end of the destruction, domination, rape, fleeing and death. The tree signifies survival and the beginning of hope.

With medicine made from the species of the Diospyros kaki it is possible to cure illnesses which are the result of radioactivity. The use of this remedy in the Chinese herbal medicine makes this clear. The remedy enhances the eliminatory processes of the body. Recent research showed the positive result of the application of the tannic acids from the fruit in the treatment of leukemia.

In the dream proving with the remedy Diospyros kaki Creveld, which I conducted in the potency 200K, the subjects of the dreams centered around the topics of survival, insecurity, danger, soldiers, rape. Also death, fire and dilapidated houses as symbol for serious illnesses, were frequent themes of the dreams. Mention was also made of a house, which was ill because of a tremendous amount of stored chemicals, expulsion of chemical so evil cannot take hold, strange and mutilated beings, love, issues of black and white, cleaning-up and balance.

Diospyros kaki Creveld has now been in use for three and a half years. I have treated around thirty patients with this remedy with good result. Also other homeopaths have been using the remedy to their satisfaction.

Diospyros kaki Creveld is indicated in cases of psychological and physical problems which are caused by a trauma as a result of war or a fire, problems resulting from chemotherapy, radiotherapy and from poisoning with chemicals.
The remedy enhances the detoxification. It has a positive influence on the skin, like diminishing the itch in the cases of burns. Also in cases with problems in the region of ears, nose and throat, asthmatic problems and multiple sclerosis, this remedy has proved it’s self.

Case
The patient usually is thin and has eating problems. There is a history of self-mutilation and suicidal thoughts. The patient has lots of fears, nightmares, dreams about war and fire, has sleeping problems, is depressed, and has a feeling of loneliness. The patient often uses the words ‘survival’ and ‘insecurity’. The colors white and black are prominent in their dreams.
In a former article (Links 15; 3/02: 177-183) two cases were presented. One of a woman with complaints after radiation and chemotherapy and the other of a woman who was traumatized during the Second World War.
In my book on Diospyros kaki Creveld I describe ten cases, and the entire dream-proving. I also give a tentative reflection on the symbolism and the psycho-therapeutic data of the tree. In the book you will find the botanical description and a summing up of the constituting chemicals. Also about 1900 additions for the repertory are included.

In this article I will describe the case of a forty-year-old woman who was caught in a fire. The patient has severe burns. She has been treated for breast cancer and her parents and grandparents were traumatized by war experiences.
The woman is married and has two children. She is food-conscious and had studied naturopathy. She came to me for consultation because of various complaints which developed after a fire now eight and a half years ago. During the consultation it became apparent that besides the fire there were other reasons to prescribe Diospyros kaki Creveld.

Case History:"My husband and I heard a noise upstairs where our daughters were sleeping. Apparently a fire had started which was caused by two candlelit lanterns my daughters had burning in their bedroom. When opening the bedroom door a tremendous explosion ensued. I was standing at the bottom-end of my daughter’s bed just two meters from the fire. I didn’t inhale, that is what saved my life. My husband and daughters managed to get safely downstairs. It was as if I were looking at a TV program. The two top floors were completely burned down. After the fire I became totally detached also from husband, children and other family members."

Complaints after the fire:
Third degree burns on hands and part of the face.
Second degree burns on the other parts of the face, ears, external throat and thighs.
First degree burns over the chest.

Treatment:
Skin grafts on both hands, followed some time later by operations on the hands for reconstruction.
The hospital in which the patient was treated wasn’t accommodated to treat patients with extensive burns. Once at home, the patient, being acquainted with First Aid Care and having some knowledge of naturopathy started applying good oils for wound-care (Jojoba). She also saw to a good and balanced diet with additional food supplements. Her skin healed well

Present Complaints:
Post-traumatic stress. Sleeps badly, nightmares.
Shuts down and becomes panicky in a too warm room and in a car with dry heat.
The senses are acute, awakens with fright from the smell of the sewage-treatment plant in the neighborhood. "I overreact to noise. I am always on the alert. I must be able to get away, to escape."
Patient is always tired and has a ‘sleep-day’ twice a month.
Itching of the hands, face and thighs. Always some part of the body itches. The itch is painful, stitching and burning.
The hands hurt as if they are still burning.
Patient cools off quickly.
The involuntary movements which resulted from the fire have diminished in the past years, but when tired the upper limbs are out of control.
Fluid retention in the lower limbs, worse with heat.
Also swelling of hands and face when in the sun.
Recently fluid retention in left upper arm.
The eyes are aging prematurely: ‘mouches volentes’

Other amnestic information:
As a child the patient had a lot of accidents. One of which was a car accident after which both her legs and left arm were paralyzed for some time.
She had an inflammation of the bursae of both her hip joints and of both her knees. When ascending stairs the hips still trouble her.
A year after the fire the patient was treated for breast-cancer. One breast had to be amputated and the lymph nodes in the armpit were removed. At that time she was very tired. The patient was still recovering from the fire-trauma, so she decided not to have radiation and chemotherapy. Up until now she is convalescing from both these events.

Dreams:
Recurring dream: "I open the door and cannot retreat. I have to push forward, I cannot stop. I have to go through the fire and I re-experience the whole episode: bright red, white clouds like steam. My hands and face become painful. I awake with pain and difficult respiration. I have these dream a few times a year. A dream I had when young was the following. It is daytime, the sky becomes dark. Against this darkness sparks, tongues of fire and ash are visible. That evening a volcano in Chili erupted."

War-history:"My grandfather on mother’s side had been in the ‘underground defense organization’. He died during the Second World War in Berlin. Both my grandmothers were German. My father was a military man. Because of this we lived for some years in Germany. Our family used to visit Bergen Belsen (concentration camp) twice a year. The house I grew up in still had the shrapnel in the beams."
Prescription: Diospyros kaki Creveld MK

Follow up
Three weeks later she telephoned me:
Her dreams were less strenuous. Her knees were giving her more trouble. This is an old complaint that has come back with great intensity.
Prescription: Diospyros kaki Creveld 10 MK once a week during three weeks

7 Weeks after the first prescription:"I am more at rest, calmer. I feel more centered (I, the author, also notice this). I have more energy. The last 7 weeks I have been very busy. I can stick to my program. My sleep has improved so I don’t need my sleep-days any longer. The involuntary movements of my arms have more or less disappeared. My concentration has improved and my knees hardly bother me. The pain in the fingertips has lessened. The itching comes and goes, it is still painful, stitching and burning. I still have the feeling that my hands are on fire. I cool-off quickly and because of the warm weather I have swollen hands and feet."
Presciption: Diospyros kaki Creveld 50 MK.

9 Weeks after first intake, contact via telephone:"A few days after I had taken the remedy I dreamt about the fire. This was the first time in a long while. The painful itching has diminished considerably, it now feels like the itch of a mosquito bite so more a superficial itch. I have less incitement to scratch."

20 Weeks after first intake:"I feel calmer still, I want start work again. I have plenty of energy, no more sleep-days, and I haven’t had any nightmares. No more deep painful itching, the itching as from mosquito bites returns about twice a week. Now I have a different kind of itch that bothers me maybe twice a week. It feels like a pinching kind of itch like a nail pressing down in a small spot. The involuntary movements of my arms have become rare. I have no more swelling of hands and feet, not even in warm weather. During the last two weeks my hands seem less painfully hot. I still react adversely to noises. My eyes haven’t improved."
Prescription: Diospyros kaki Creveld 50MK.

24 Weeks after the first intake she telephoned me:
No itching. Energy good. Involuntary movement of arms virtually non-existent.

7 Months after first intake:"I now have a complaint that I had in my youth, swollen joints of hands, toes and knees. The complaints caused by the fire have more or less gone. My hands aren’t as hot and I don’t become cold all of a sudden. All the members of my family have a cold, I don’t."
Prescription: Diospyros kaki Creveld 10MK.

8 months after the first prescription had contact by telephone:
Hardly any complaints of the joints.

13 months after the first consultation:
Patient feels much better. Hardly any complaints. Energy good. Patient has restarted her study of naturopathy.

Analysis
The prescription of Diospyros kaki Creveld was based on the following:
- Complaints caused by the fire.
- Patient used the words unsafe and survival often.
- In her youth the patient dreamt of a volcanic eruption with theme of black and white.
- Patient had breast cancer.
- Parents and grandparents have/had a traumatic war past.